Treasure Found
by randomwriting
Summary: Lost treasure, lost love and lingering regret all lead to an unexpected gift from the heart. SC.


Treasure Found

Disclaimer: CBS, creators, producers, etc., own all recognizable characters, not me.

Treasure Found

Of the 365 nights that made up a year, tonight was the one Tim despised most. Always had, probably always would. Seemed nothing good ever came out of something that had such high expectations placed on it. To most of the population this night was one for revelry, but Tim found it was most often a night of regrets. And this year, for him, nothing could be truer. At least it would all be over soon. Then maybe this tightening in his chest would dissipate. Feeling nothing would be such a welcome relief from the burden of regret that clung to him like a second skin and weighed him down with unanswered 'what ifs'.

Now all he had to do was get through the next few hours. Easier said than done.

There was a light drizzle and a fair amount of fog on this unseasonably warm early evening. There was also, not surprising, a fair amount of traffic. It appeared most of Miami had somewhere special to be tonight and they were all in a hurry to get there. He could've had plans, but there was absolutely nothing he wanted to do and no one he wanted to see. He made that desire crystal clear to the few people in his life and he hoped they'd respect it. It shouldn't be a problem for they all had their own plans anyway. All he wanted was to get home and off the road, because if he stayed on his bike tonight, he couldn't be trusted not to simply disappear.

The rain had picked up by the time he pulled in front of his townhouse and parked his bike. He briefly wondered if he should've stopped on the way and gotten something to eat, because he honestly couldn't remember the last time he grocery shopped, but he wasn't that hungry so it didn't really matter. There was likely something edible in the kitchen to tide him over. And there was plenty of beer, what else did he need?

He threw his keys on the counter with enough force to scatter the mail that had been collecting there, landing most of it on the floor. With an exasperated sigh, he retrieved the assorted envelopes and tossed them back on the counter to be dealt with another time. Heading straight for the fridge, he pulled out a beer, popped off the top and grabbed an open box of crackers from the counter. He ambled into the living room, stopping first to turn the stereo on low. Whatever CD was still in there would be fine; it didn't much matter as long as there was noise in the background. Tonight wasn't a night he cared to listen to the noise in his head. He pushed aside a stack of journals, papers and unfinished books to make room for the beer and cracker box on the coffee table, retrieving the television remote at the same time.

'There must be a bowl game on,' he thought to himself as he surfed through the channels. Finding what he was looking for, he muted the sound and walked over to his desk in the corner of the room. It was as much of a mess as every other flat surface in his apartment these days. He sighed heavily as he took in the chaos, intentionally keeping his eyes off the framed photo purposely pushed off to the side.

"I really gotta clean up in here sometime," he said aloud. He rummaged around the various papers and journals, finally locating the article he was working on and the notes he needed. He grabbed his stuff and in his haste, sent an assortment of papers flying to the floor. He bent down to pick up the scattered debris when one piece in particular caught his eye.

He briefly closed his eyes and heaved a heavy sigh, which did nothing for the increasing tightness in his chest. Picking up the thick linen square, he lightly fingered the engraved writing, feeling the all too familiar pang of regret, then tossed it in the full trashcan and padded back to the couch. He collapsed onto the cushions, put his feet up on the coffee table, grabbed the beer and gulped down half the soothing liquid before taking the bottle from his lips. Hand damp from the condensation on the bottle, he wiped it on his jeans, and raked it through his hair, before leaning back on the couch. He closed his eyes for a moment, willing the discomfort in his chest to disappear.

Several long moments later, he picked up his article and tossed a couple of crackers in his mouth. It took awhile, but soon the article had most of his attention, save for the occasional glances at his watch. The sound of knocking startled him. He briefly considered not answering the door, but the persistent pounding told him whoever was out there was not to be deterred. Pissed and aggravated, he swore under his breath as he made his way to the door. Whoever this was would soon regret stopping by tonight. He was in no mood for company and had no qualms about letting them know.

His eyebrows rose and his eyes widened at the unexpected sight before him. Shocked, he said nothing to his guest, simply stared unblinking with complete surprise on his face. This was definitely the last person he expected to see tonight, or any night for that matter. He watched as she took a deep breath, then nervously bit down on her bottom lip. His eyes traveled the length of her, taking in an outfit much different than the one that he briefly pictured her in earlier. Wearing jeans, a plain white tank top and a much too big, ugly, striped button down he recognized as one of his, she wasn't her usual put together self. But even dressed this way, sporting slightly damp and messy hair, Calleigh Duquesne still took his breath away.

A jumbled assortment of emotions surged through him as the initial shock at seeing her at dissipated. He searched her face for clues, noticing for the first time, the red, puffy eyes and tear streaked cheeks. That wasn't a sight he was familiar with. She normally kept her emotions in pretty tight control, seeing her this distressed both alarmed and concerned him. He blinked several times and swallowed hard. Decidedly avoiding his gaze, she simply stood and waited.

"Do you want to come in?" he asked softly, when his power of speech returned. She nodded, finally meeting his gaze, but not holding it.

She walked past him, into the living room and dropped onto the couch, taking the place next to the one he had just vacated. Hesitating slightly, he sat down next to her, careful to leave some space between them.

"You okay?" he asked, unable to keep the concern out of his voice as he stole a sideways glance at her.

"I will be," she answered in a barely audible voice. She leaned back on the couch, closed her eyes and he felt as much as saw her body shudder.

He leaned back himself and waited. Whatever it was, she would tell him when she was good and ready. Waiting quietly, he could feel his heart rate rise along with his confusion and anxiety, but there would be no rushing her. That she was here at all and on tonight, of all nights, in this much obvious distress, distress that she wasn't hiding from him, probably told him more than her words ever would. As much as he wanted to reach out to her, he knew her well enough to keep his distance. They sat quietly and unmoving for what felt like an eternity.

"Why Tim? I don't understand. Why now?" she asked, her voice breaking. Lost in thought he was caught off guard, both by her question and her emotion-laden voice. A rustling sound in her lap got his attention, causing him to look down, momentarily forgetting her question and his confusion.

He exhaled heavily at the sight of the small box that she clutched tightly in her hand, it's sides still covered in ripped gold wrapping paper. He hadn't noticed the box when she walked in because he had been too shocked by her appearance. Seeing it now put her still unanswered question into context. He knew why she was here, knew the cause of her distress and it pained him to know he was the reason behind it. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she studied him intently, waiting on his response.

"I wanted you to have it," he answered, although he knew it wouldn't begin to satisfy her.

"Now?" she asked, her confusion evident in her voice and her eyes.

His timing couldn't have been worse and he had known that all along, yet he made the decision to leave the gift anyway. He just hadn't expected this reaction and he certainly never expected to see her tonight. Exactly what he expected wasn't clear, but his intention had never been to hurt her.

"It was in my locker yesterday. I didn't know how it got there and there was no card or note attached," she began, as if anticipating that this information wouldn't come easily from him.

"I didn't leave a note. I guess hoped you would know... I didn't know what to say. I'm sorry..." he started, as his voice trailed off.

"I did know," she said, her eyes not leaving his, "but I didn't understand and I still don't."

He sighed heavily, dropping his gaze. "Remember the day you dragged me to that outdoor antique show?" he asked, his thoughts immediately transported to another time, when things between them had been much, much different. His eyes briefly darted in her direction.

"Umm." She nodded and he noticed the small, sad smile on her lips.

"You were on a mission that day." He paused, remembering the perfectness of the day, when there existed a love between them he thought would last forever. Sadly, it was the last such day before misunderstandings and events seemingly out of their control worked to split them up. He shook his head and sighed. Even today, after all this time, he had trouble figuring out exactly what happened and why they hadn't fixed it. "You were trying to find your grandmother's cameo."

"The one I lost." Her voice was so soft, that if he weren't sitting next to her he wouldn't have heard her at all.

"We searched all day, but had no luck and you finally decided that it wasn't meant to be yours after all." She had been heartbroken that day, unable to mask her disappointment. He remembered wanting nothing more than to put a smile back on her face and alleviate her hurt. But in typical Calleigh fashion, she put the disappointment behind her and never brought it up again. He, however, couldn't forget the lost brooch or what it had meant to her.

The cameo in question was a very old and regal looking one in Calleigh's memory. She was able to describe it to him in intricate detail. It had belonged to her mother's mother and had been handed down to Nana from her own grandmother, Calleigh's great, great grandmother. The brooch came with a colorful history and many memories attached to it. As a child, Calleigh would sit at her grandmother's knee for hours listening to the tales and then she would try to imagine the life of the lovely woman delicately carved into the stone.

As a special treat, her grandmother would occasionally let her wear the pin to church. All she had to do was promise to take good care of it. It was a thrill for Calleigh, both because she loved that cameo and because it demonstrated her grandmother's faith in her. The unthinkable happened a few days after her tenth birthday. She had permission to wear the cameo to church as a belated birthday treat and in her haste and excitement, had not secured the clasp. The pin was lost that day and never found, despite the painstaking efforts of many. Her grandmother's disappointment weighed heavily on her, but what made the loss that much worse was the fact that her beloved grandmother died suddenly, just two weeks later. For Calleigh the two events would be forever linked.

She searched for the cameo for the remainder of her youth, no matter where she was, just on the off chance that it might show up where she least expected it. As an adult, the idea of finding a replica became very appealing, until the day she searched with Tim and decided that even if she found one similar to her grandmother's, it still wouldn't be the same. Whatever replacement she found wouldn't have the history or the same memories attached to it. So just like that, she ended her search.

"I remember," she said, looking off in the distance. "I was through looking after all those years of hanging onto the hope that I would someday find it. It seemed silly, I guess. I said, even if I found one like it, it wouldn't be the same, because some things, like memories can't be replaced..." He heard a distinct catch in her voice as she spoke that last sentence.

"Well, I kept looking anyway. I wanted to find it for you. You still seemed so pained by the loss. But I realized after I had been searching for awhile, that I would never find the right one." He paused. "That's when I decided to find you one of your very own. One you could attach your own memories to and, oh, I don't know, maybe pass on to a child or grandchild of your own." He avoided her eyes as he spoke, especially after hearing her intermittent sniffles. "I picked this one, because she reminded me of you. She looked regal, like the one you described, but with a strong, beautiful profile, like yours. It was very old and delicate looking, yet it had survived all these years. It just seemed like something you'd want to hang onto. So, that's the one I chose." He sighed heavily.

"It's really so beautiful. You couldn't have found a more perfect cameo," she said wistfully. He glanced over and saw she was lightly fingering the pin he had gone to such length to find for her.

"I put it away for that upcoming Christmas, I was going to give it to you then," he said very softly.

"But Tim, we broke up, not long after the day we went to that antique show," she said haltingly.

He nodded. "I know. I just thought, that we would figure things out... that we wouldn't stay apart..." His voice trailed off and both were quiet for several moments. "Then I figured I would give it to you for your birthday. That came and went as well. I just waited. I guess I thought that as long as I held onto it, there was still a chance for us. I waited too long and then it was just too late, you had moved on, for good. I'm sorry Calleigh." The tightness in his chest was never more apparent than it was just then. That he had waited too long was something he'd forever regret, the way she still regretted losing her grandmother's precious pin. Love it seemed, like lost memories, couldn't be recaptured.

"It wasn't too late," she said very softly, surprising him. "When I opened the box... I realized the mistake I was about to make... I just knew in my heart," she hesitated, her voice catching once more, "I just knew..." She stopped before finishing the sentence, but when he turned to meet her eyes, he saw what she was unable to say.

"It wasn't meant to hurt you Calleigh, or to cause you this much distress. I just wanted you to have it. For your new life."

"But why?" she asked, her eyes never leaving his.

"Because it was important to you and I wanted you to be happy. I wanted you to be able to let go of some of the pain that you had carried for so long," he answered. Unable to hold her gaze any longer, he looked away. "It's just a pin."

"Tim…" she said, but never finished her thought.

"It's okay Calleigh, you don't have to say anything."

"No, I do. There's a lot I need to say, but right now, I just need to be here." She paused. "I needed to see you tonight, but I wasn't sure if you'd be home. I was afraid you might have plans."

He swept his hand over the expanse of the coffee table, indicating the article, the beer and the crackers. "You're looking at them."

She laughed lightly, sounding nervous. "Can I join you? That is, if you don't think it's too late," she asked haltingly.

He turned to face her once more. "You sure?" he asked squinting, trying to read her eyes, trying to ascertain what she was really asking. She nodded.

"Yeah, I'm really sure. In my heart, I know this is where I'm supposed to be. And I haven't felt this certain... in a long while." He nodded and leaned back on the couch, the tightness gone from his chest for the first time...in a long while. He reached over and clasped her hand in his, remembering how good it felt there. They sat quietly, each lost in thought. She leaned in against him, resting her head on his shoulder, with her hand tightly in his. He heard and felt her sigh deeply.

"Thank you for my gift," she said. "I'll cherish it always, because of how it came to be mine and the effect it's had on my life. Now there's a story for me to tell one day," she said, laughing lightly. She moved to face him. "You have no idea how much it means to me," she hesitated, "how much you mean to me. It was a treasure I thought I'd lost forever and now, maybe I haven't..." When he saw the love in her eyes, he knew she was no longer talking about her lost cameo.

"You haven't Cal, you haven't lost anything." He'd once lost a treasure, one his heart had never let go of. This time he'd be holding on tightly. "It was always there, it just needed to be found."

"Happy New Year Tim," she said. Her eyes brimmed with tears once more, but this time the smile on her face told him these were different tears. Ones filled with happiness and hope.

He held her gaze and gave her hand a squeeze. "Yeah, it will be. It will be now. Happy New Year Cal."

the end


End file.
